200 THE AGRARIAN CRUSADE 



or preserving economic as well as political equality. 

 They were pioneers in this field of social politics, 

 but they did not work alone. Independent re- 

 formers, either singly or in groups, labor organiza- 

 tions and parties, and radicals everywhere cooper- 

 ated with them. Both the old parties were split 

 into factions by this progressive movement; and in 

 1912 a Progressive party appeared on the scene and 

 leaped to second place in its first election, only to 

 vanish from the stage in 1916 when both the old 

 parties were believed to have become progressive. 



The two most hopeful developments in American 

 politics during recent years have been the progres- 

 sive movement, with its program of social justice, 

 and the growth of independent voting both 

 developments made possible in large part by the 

 agrarian crusade. Perhaps the most significant 

 contribution of the farmers' movement to American 

 politics has been the training of the agricultural 

 population to independent thought and action. No 

 longer can a political party, regardless of its plat- 

 form and candidates, count on the farmer vote as a 

 certainty. The resolution of the Farmers' Alliance 

 of Kansas "that we will no longer divide on party 

 lines and will only cast our votes for candidates of 

 the people, by the people, and for the people, " was 



